EFFECTS OF GRAFTING ON TEA 1. GROWTH, YIELD AND QUALITY

Abstract

SUMMARYTrials in Kenya have shown that yields of tea clones can be increased significantly by grafting onto suitable rootstocks, with the best combinations giving profitable yield increases compared to straight cuttings. However, stock × scion interactions were significant, and not all clones gave useful responses to grafting even onto the best rootstocks, so combinations must be tested individually before commercial planting is considered. The effect of grafting was to increase the number of shoots harvested, with little change in mean shoot weight. Grafting had little or no effect on quality of the tea produced. Attempts to find a method of identifying good rootstocks without testing them in grafting trials were inconclusive.